April 7, 2015

Updated at 4:40 p.m. to add comment from District Attorney

A troubling breach in school bus safety last week that elicited “dismay and disgust” from the Kennett Consolidated School District superintendent is under investigation, officials said.

In a statement released to parents on Tuesday, April 7, Superintendent Barry Tomasetti said a 7-year-old student who was picked up at 8:30 a.m. on Tuesday, March 31, never made it to school. Instead, the bus driver from the Krapf Bus Companies drove the van to the bus company’s Kennett Square depot, parked, and never realized until more than five hours later that he left the student on board.

Tomasetti’s statement said that the student was only discovered after the district responded to a conversation with the student’s mother and alerted Krapf’s.

“Thankfully, the 7-year-old student involved was unharmed,” the statement said. “I have personally apologized to the student, the student’s family, and I now extend that apology to our entire KCSD community.”

Shawn McGlinchey, who works in Krapf’s Safety Department, said that the driver was terminated the same day. He said that the company’s drivers all undergo rigorous background checks.

McGlinchey released a statement that said the company “has safely transported the students of Chester County for over 72 years. Through our quality drivers, we provide excellent service to the students, the parents and the school districts we serve. With regards to the Kennett student left on the bus, the matter is under investigation, and we are working closely with the Kennett Area School District and the local authorities. “

Tomasetti’s statement added that the district has an “absolute need to protect the privacy of the student and family, and that the situation, which occurred right before spring break, remains under investigation, including by law enforcement authorities.”

Chester County District Attorney Tom Hogan confirmed that his office is working with Kennett Square Police to investigate the incident.

Tomasetti’s statement also said the driver, who had the necessary child-check clearances, violated Krapf’s rules that require the vehicle be checked for passengers before and after use. “He also failed to demonstrate any common sense and rest assured will never again transport a KCSD student. … Words cannot express my level of dismay and disgust when learning what happened,” the statement said.

According to the statement, the bus company was directed by the school district to reinstruct all bus operators on their responsibilities to the children. The statement said the district will be “reviewing our absence-from-school notification procedures to see what could have been handled differently.”

 

 

Nobody was blaming PennDOT for making potholes, but they sure were pointing fingers at the agency for not fixing them.

In Birmingham Township, a resident, a police chief, a supervisor and an aid for a state representative all took aim at the state’s transportation department for not repairing the roads after a brutal winter.

Resident Harry Miller brought up the subject of potholes during a public comment period during the April Board of Supervisors’ meeting. He said PennDOT was “beyond negligent” for not addressing the situation and said he was concerned for safety, especially for township police who could run into a problem while responding to emergency calls.

“Somebody’s going to get killed,” Miller said.

Police Chief Tom Nelling said he’s contacted PennDOT, but to no avail. “I call, but they won’t come out.”

Supervisor Bill Kirkpatrick said he returned from a 1,500-mile road trip and found the roads in deplorable condition.

“Coming back to Pennsylvania was like being in a third-world country” because the roads are in such poor condition, he said.

Kirkpatrick said he doesn’t care if the repairs aren’t done properly right away, but the holes must be patched, even if only temporarily.

The conversation eventually led to a question of whether the township should begin patching the state roads. At that point, Joe Mobile, an aid for state Rep. Dan Truitt, R-156, which includes Birmingham, said Truitt has met with PennDOT over the pothole issue. Part of those discussions, he said, included whether or not municipalities should jump in. As with Nelling’s calls, those talks went nowhere.

“Dan Truitt has been annoying PennDOT,” Mobile said. “He had a meeting with them, but their contract with unions won’t allow townships to fix potholes on state roads.”

(To report potholes and other roadway maintenance concerns on state roads, call 610-566-0972 in Delaware County or 484-340-3200 in Chester County, or visit www.dot.state.pa.us and click on “submit feedback.”)

Other business

• Supervisors voted 3-0 to grant preliminary approval for the renovation of Otto’s BMW on Route 202. The plan calls for adding 20,000 square feet of space for a larger sales area and additional service bays. There will also be rooftop parking for inventory and cars waiting for service. The driveway onto Penn Oaks Drive will also be reconfigured. Work is expected to start in June or July.

• The board voted to award a service contract to C&H Industrial Services to install equipment that will reduce more nitrogen from treated wastewater. The contract is for $200,455. Equipment costs were $157,000.

• Birmingham Road will be closed for about an hour on the evening of Thursday, July 16, when the Kennett Symphony holds its annual 5K fund-raiser.

(Kathy Brady Shea added content for this story.)